


Nerf Balls and Books: Meeting Dr. Handsome

by AnonymousJCourferre



Series: Nerf Balls and Books [1]
Category: Les Misérables (2012), Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 05:15:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23339770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnonymousJCourferre/pseuds/AnonymousJCourferre
Summary: Courfeyrac and Bossuet are studying, but some of Bossuet's bad luck ends in a trip to the ER and Courfeyrac meeting the love of his lifeTW: brief mentions of needles and blood
Relationships: Combeferre/Courfeyrac (Les Misérables), Joly/Bossuet Laigle
Series: Nerf Balls and Books [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1682176
Comments: 6
Kudos: 12





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I do write more than Cross fandom AUs that take a hold of my brain. Hope you enjoy!  
> Also, this has the potential to have more chapter, maybe? Idk yet...

“No, no. Really Bossuet. I’ll be fine. We really don’t need to do anything. I’ll just put a bandaid over it and be good as new!” Courf said, holding a kleenex to his forehead, right above his eyebrow, where he had a nasty cut. 

“Just, here, let me take a photo.” Bossuet responded. Quickly moving Courf’s hand and snapping a photo. Courf glared at him. “Do you… do you think you should keep your hair off your forehead? You know. Just in case.” He said nervously. 

“I will have you know! My curls are the cleanest, softest… hey, what are you doing with that photo? Who did you send that to? Bossuet!” Courf said trying to reach for the phone. Bossuet jumped out of his reach, almost tumbling into a whiteboard.

“I just want to be sure! A second opinion never hurts.” He said. Courf glared at him. “What if it scars?” Bossuet asked. 

“I’ll be handsomely devilish and I’ll be liked all the more for it. It’ll add mystique and mystery.” Courf said, refusing to acknowledge he might need stitches. A ping broke through their back and forth and suddenly Bossuet was a flurry of action as he suddenly started packing up their things, dropping a stack of notes in the process, and nearly sending Courfeyrac’s computer flying. 

Courfeyrac quickly caught the computer before it befell any danger and glanced warily at Bossuet. 

“What’s going on? Who did you text?” He asked, a slightly accusatory tone in his voice.

“No one really, just someone. Who knows medical things. He says you definitely need to get it checked.” he said, still a flurry of motion as he tried to pick up their things. Courfeyrac narrowed his eyes. 

“Is this the same someone that thought your allergies were turning into pneumonia?” He asked suspiciously.

“Honestly, it was an accident. He knows what he’s talking about. He’s just worried. But it’s always better to be safe than sorry.” He said. Courf crossed arms over his chest and pouted. 

“I will not move from this seat and you cannot make me.” He said. Bossuet sighed, but continued to attempt to clean up their things. Five minutes later Courfeyrac’s phone buzzed. He looked down to see Enjolras’s name flash across the screen. Courf eagerly picked it up, hoping he could get out of whatever Bossuet clearly had in mind. 

“Yellow!” Courf chirped.

“Courfeyrac, why did I just get a text from someone I worked in a group project, with your bloody forehead?” Enjolras greeted. Courfeyrac deflated.

“No reason.” He mumbled. 

“Courfeyrac.” Came the slightly demanding tone on the other line. Courf sighed

“Fine. It’s my forehead. A horse stomped on me and I’m going to die. Happy?” Courf asked.

“No. Go get it checked out. If for nothing else to check for a concussion.” Came his friend’s reply.

“It was a nerf ball! Okay?! It didn’t even hit that hard.” He whined. His friend was silent on the other line. The only sound was the distant clicking of keys on a keyboard. A couple of minutes passed. “Enj?” Courf finally asked.

“I’m not going to plead and beg. It’s your own face. But I’m not hosting movie night this week if you don’t go.” He said. Courf sighed. It was annoying how well his friends knew him. 

“Fine.” he grumbled. “But if I come away scarred for life, I’m writing you out of my will!” He said and hung up before Enjolras had an opportunity to retort, not that he likely would. 

Courfeyrac grumbled as he helped Bossuet pack up their things. Bossuet had somehow managed to get a paper cut and already tripped multiple times. If Courfeyrac had not feared for their belongings making it through the whirlwind clean up, he likely would have tried to stall more. He safely stowed away his computer and handed Bossuet his things. 

“All right then. Lead me to my doom if you must. But I’m not letting you have any of my ice cream at movie night. Which is a pity. This was going to be your first movie night. How’d you even know to text Enj?” he asked as they walked out of the study room they had been occupying. Courfeyrac was trying to keep his mind off of the impending visit to the hospital. Meanwhile, Bossuet was doing his best to not trip down the stairs and couldn’t quite keep up with everything Courfeyrac was saying.

“I’m very sorry Courfeyrac. I didn’t mean to hit you. And I didn’t think the books would fall the way they did. Oh, Enjolras? Don’t you remember? We worked that group project together and you were his roommate, and.”

“I still am!” Courfeyrac said indignantly. 

“Right. Well. Anyway, you wouldn’t leave us alone and it seemed to bug Enjolras but you actually proved to be quite helpful in what we were going over. Then you and I found we have this class together this semester.” Bossuet continued as they walked.

“Oh right. Well, I have been known to be helpful from time to time.” Courfeyrac retorted, though with less energy as they approached the hospital. 

Courfeyrac fidgeted as he filled out forms and waited to be called back. 

“You know, really it’s fine. If it scars, it scars.” He said standing up. Bossuet was slightly taken off guard and in a hurry to catch up with Courfeyrac, he somehow managed to bump Courfeyrac’s forehead and cause it to start bleeding again. In the commotion of Bossuet attempting to help Courfeyrac and get the kleenex on his forehead again, a nurse called out for Courfeyrac. They both stopped their actions, straightened themselves and followed the bemused nurse.

“Now. Do either of you want to tell me what’s going on?” The nurse asked. The two looked at each other and started speaking at the same time. The nurse sighed. “Right, well there isn’t making any sense of that. I’m going to take your blood pressure and temperature.” She said. “You, move to the side please.” She said pointing to Bossuet. He stumbled over something and bumbled to the side, trying to hide from the nurse’s stern gaze. She busied herself with Courfeyrac. Unable to really sit still, Courfeyrac took the kleenex from his forehead. The nurse tutted at his dirty kleenex before replacing it. “We’ll get that looked after soon enough. Tell me what happened.

“Studying.” Courfeyrac said, uncharacteristically quiet and short on words.

“Really? And what kind of studying leads to bodily harm?” The nurse asked.

“Fencing.” Courfeyrac. Stated. The nurse gave him a look but shook her head and typed up the notes. “Right. Well. Should be simple enough someone will be along to see to you soon.” The nurse said before bustling out again.

Courfeyrac looked to meet Bossuet’s confused gaze. 

“I’m sorry Courfeyrac but I don’t think I know how to fence.” He said. Courfeyrac rolled his eyes. 

“It’s fine Bossuet. But I wasn’t about to tell her that a nerf ball somehow bounced off the table, then my head hit some books that managed to topple onto my head and the corner of one hit me just right enough to gouge my forehead.” He sighed. He was interrupted by someone clearing their throat. 

“Nerf balls and books, hmm? Well that would explain more on how the scrape happened when in fencing you should be wearing a mask.” a warm voice reasoned. Courfeyrac jumped and looked up to see a handsome doctor pushing his glasses up his nose. 

“I, uh, well there, yes?” Courfeyrac squeaked out, his face going red. He heard Bossuet laugh from the side and shot a glare at him. 

“Well, now that we actually know what happened, let’s take a look.” The doctor said. Courfeyrac eyed him suspiciously.

“I thought you lot were supposed to take longer?” Courfeyrac asked him. The doctor chuckled.

“Well, we are known to take our time. But my attending sent me to take care of things in here today and I just happened to be ready for you.” He said with a gentle smile. Courfeyrac nodded his head, but then winced at the friction of the kleenex. 

“Alright, let’s take a look then.” He said, gently guiding Courf’s hand away. Courfeyrac was mesmerized by the man’s warm voice and eyes. His eyes seemed kind. They were concentrated on the task, but not cold and impersonal like some doctors. Courfeyrac thought he would probably do anything the man asked him to. It was odd. He wasn’t used to being swept off his feet this way. Sure he flirted with every person he encountered and could appreciate a handsome face. But this was different. Courfeyrac was usually the one doing the sweeping. 

The doctor bent over him taking a look at the wound before sitting back. “Should be pretty simple, a few stitches and you should be good to go.” He said. Courfeyrac suspiciously eyed the doctor. “But I do also need to check for a concussion.” He said, his eyebrows scrunching with a little concern

“We can’t do any of that glue stuff or natural healing?” Courfeyrac asked him.

“Afraid not. But I’ve got steady hands. Give the numbing a little time to take effect and you’ll be alright.” He said. Courfeyrac nodded silently, lost for words for a moment before he found them again.

“Oh, Doctor…?” he asked. 

"Combeferre.” He said with a smile as he prepared to walk towards Courfeyrac with the injection. Courfeyrac held up a hand.

“Really, I think glue might be the better option here.” He said. Combeferre gave Courfeyrac a second glance and stepped back.

“Not a fan of needles? It’s alright. You wouldn’t be the first, you won’t be the last. How exactly did the ball and the books hit your head?” He asked. Courfeyrac was taken aback, typically someone would have countered him and told them they knew what’s best or teased him.

“Oh, well. You know we were just tossing a book. I mean a ball!” Courfeyrac said, a little muddled in his thoughts. “Um a ball, but soft, nothing bad. But somehow it managed to knock the books and well they tumbled on top of me.” he said. Courfeyrac hadn’t even noticed but the doctor had already managed to inject the numbing agent and was preparing the stitches.

“It was my fault. I’ve got all the bad luck in the world. So not that surprising really.” Bossuet added in sheepishly. Combeferre turned a bemused look to Bossuet, but looked back to Courfeyrac.

“Are you sure you’re feeling alright?” Asked Combeferre. Courfeyrac gave him an odd look. “Most people don’t confuse a book and a ball.

“Betwee- what? Yes, of course!” Courfeyrac said, slightly offended. 

“Sorry, I had to ask. You confused them. And if a book really hit your head I’m a little concerned about a concussion.” He said. “Right, lay back now, relax. Let’s get this stitched up.” Courfeyrac’s breath hitched slightly at the proximity of the other man and the gentle nudges of the hand. Courfeyrac was slightly confused. The doctor had a comforting air about him. Courfeyrac, who typically would charm his way out of needles when he could, somehow found himself being charmed into getting stitches. Courfeyrac could see the gentle look of concentration and laid still, just staring at him, mesmerized by Combeferre.

Combeferre backed away and gave one last close look at his work. 

“That should do it.” He said, looking satisfied. Bossuet curiously looked over his shoulder and his face looked concerned.

“Um, Doctor…. Have you done stitches before?” He asked. Courfeyrac’s eyes widened at Bossuet’s questions. Combeferre looked confused as Courfeyrac frantically pulled his phone out to look at his reflection. 

“No need to worry your pretty little face.” A new voice interrupted. “Combeferre’s done his fair share. As we all have. But I still have him beat on the amount.” Another doctor had appeared between the curtains, leaning on a cane. Combeferre arched an eyebrow but continued typing up his notes as Courfeyrac tossed a dirty look to Bossuet, after he had check Combeferre’s handiwork. He desperately wanted to chuck something at his friend but figured they’d had enough bad luck for one day. Bossuet didn’t seem to be paying attention anymore either, which would make it twice as bad.

Combeferre pushed back from the computer and looked back to the other doctor. 

“Did you need something, Joly? Or did you just come to brag about the number of stitches you can do? I still have you beat in technique. Doctor Fawn said it’s the best they’ve seen in years.” Combeferre said. Joly shook his head in dismay.

“He just knew you were having a bad day. And yes, I need a second opinion on something.” The other doctor said nodding his head on the other side of the curtain. The doctor, Joly apparently, sent a small, knowing smile to Bossuet. Combeferre stood up and smiled at Courfeyrac.

“Right. Well, your stitches are done. They may be a bit tender and sore for the next couple of days. Now, I am still concerned about a concussion so you’ll need to wait to have that test done before you’ll be discharged. But after that, you should be good to go.” Combeferre finished with a friendly smile.

“A test? I’m afraid I haven’t had time to study, Doctor.” Courf said, slowly regaining his usual self. Combefere let out a short chuckle.

“Well, the good news for you is this is a pop quiz sort of situation. The less you’ve studied the better.” He said

“Oh no. Those are the worst!” Courfeyrac said dramatically. Forgetting about his forehead he put his hand on his forehead before wincing and lowering his hand. 

“You’ll be fine. I’m sure.” Combferre said with a smile. He turned to Bossuet. “Be sure he leaves that alone? Less dramatics, more rest.” He said with a smile and wink to Courfeyrac.

“If you’re quite done, Doctor Technique. The consultation?” Joly said, gesturing for Combeferre to move on. Combeferre gave a nod to both Courfeyrac and Bossuet before disappearing behind the curtain. 

Courfeyrac let out a soft sigh, “I think I’m in love.” He said dreamily.

“Me too.” Responded Bossuet. Courfeyrac turned, trying to decipher if his friend was teasing him, but was surprised to find he too was staring dreamily after the curtain. 

“What? I mean he was a handsome fellow but not your type exactly I would think.” Courfeyrac said a little defensively. Bossuet turned to look at him confused before realization hit him.

“Oh, not the first one. The second one that came in.” He said. Courfeyrac let out a sigh of relief. But before he could say anything another nurse came bustling in to test Courfeyrac for a concussion. 

A couple of hours later the two friends were walking down the street arm in arm.

“Do you suppose there’s something in the water there?” Bossuet asked. Courfeyrac sighed dreamily.

“I don’t know but if more doctors looked like that, the hospital might not be such a bad place.” He replied. Bossuet hummed in agreement.

“Well, shall we get on? I think we can meet some of the others at the Corinth. You’re not supposed to sleep for awhile anyway.” He said.

“Sure. You owe me a drink for all this trouble though.” Courfeyrac said. Bossuet let out a snort.

“I just helped you meet the love of your life. I think that’s enough thanks.”

“I don’t think he realizes I exist and I’ll never see him again.” Courfeyrac sighed. Bossuet patted Courfeyrac’s arm.

“Right, one drink coming up.” Bossuet said with a smile.


	2. Spying on Dr. Handsome

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Isn’t this stalking?” Bossuet asked
> 
> “We’re not doing any harm! And we’re just two students, who found a new coffee shop. Hardly the basis of stalking. If Dr. Handsome just happens to come in, or your medical “friend” then we’re just lucky!” Courfeyrac said, sitting down at a table near the window. 
> 
> “With my luck…. That won’t happen at all.” Bossuet sighed, sitting down opposite of Courfeyrac. “Are you sure we should be sitting so… out in the open?” Bossuet asked

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter goes before "The Missing Piece: Dr. Handsome"  
> This fic has just kind of evolved and flowed out in an interesting order. But, from here on out, I will try and be more organized in how the chapters come out.
> 
> In the meantime..... enjoy a bumbling Courf and discovering if Combeferre and Courfeyrac will ever actually meet

~~Stalking~~ Spying on Dr. Handsome

“Isn’t this stalking?” Bossuet asked

“We’re not doing any harm! And we’re just two students, who found a new coffee shop. Hardly the basis of stalking. If Dr. Handsome just happens to come in, or your medical “friend” then we’re just lucky!” Courfeyrac said, sitting down at a table near the window. 

“With my luck…. That won’t happen at all.” Bossuet sighed, sitting down opposite of Courfeyrac. “Are you sure we should be sitting so… out in the open?” Bossuet asked.

“Look, we don’t even know that they’ll come here. So we need to sit somewhere that we can see the entrance to the hospital so we can get to know their schedule better.” Courfeyrac replied, gesturing towards the hospital that was just visible across the square they sat at. 

“This is definitely starting to fall under stalking territory.” Bossuet said, dropping a book as he pulled out his notes.

“I don’t have his home address. I don’t even have his phone number!” Courfeyrac said. “Hardly stalker behavior.” He said

“Isn’t that the point of this? So you can get Combefer-” Bossuet started to say before he found Courfeyrac leaning across the table to cover his friend’s mouth.

“Shhhh! If you mention names then people will definitely think we’re stalking!” He said. “This is why we came up with code names.” He reasoned, cautiously sitting back. Bossuet rolled his eyes, but he knew he wasn’t going to get through to Courfeyrac and he really needed help studying for the exam they had coming up. The two settled into their studying, Courfeyrac trying to “Bossuet proof” the table as he called it, attempt to guard against as much bad luck as they could. 

“I’ve got a large vanilla latte with 2 pumps of caramel syrup and extra whip, for Glitter King! And a medium caramel macchiato!” A barista called out. Before Bossuet could get up, Courfeyrac put a hand up. “I’ll get it.”

“Okay, Glitter King.” Bossuet said as Courfeyrac stood up to get their orders. 

The two settled in to study for a while, quietly making notes, comparing answers, and building a study guide. At one point Bossuet had taken out a nerf ball again but one look from Courfeyrac and he was quickly putting it back in his bag. It had been a few hours with thankfully very few accidents on Bossuet’s part and while they had gotten some good work done, there was no sign of doctors Combeferre and Joly. Bossuet glanced at his phone and looked up at his friend.

“Courf…” He started. Courfeyrac sighed and looked slightly disappointed.

“Oui. I know. We need to go.” Courfeyrac agreed, already starting to gather his stuff up. 

“It’s okay. It wasn’t likely we would randomly happen upon them.” Bossuet said kindly. Courfeyrac looked up at his friend quizzically.

“I thought you said this could be considered stalking?” Courfeyrac asked. Bossuet shrugged and pulled his bag onto his shoulder.

“And I thought you said we were just two friends studying together?” He responded. Courfeyrac laughed and linked his arm with Bossuet's as they walked out the door and down the street, not noticing the two men in scrubs, deep in conversation, approaching the coffee shop from the way they had turned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Courfeyrac and Bossuet continued to stake out the coffee shop every few days. Grantaire took an interest in their searches for Dr. Handsome and Bossuet’s “medical friend” and joined them occasionally. This was one such afternoon, Grantaire was curled into a corner of the booth while listening to Bossuet and Courfeyrac quiz one another back and forth. One of Grantaire’s eyebrows raised as he studied the two friends.

“Wait, Bossuet. Didn’t you text this ‘medical friend’ the photo when Courfeyrac first got the cut?” He asked

“Yes?” Bossuet asked confused.

“And wasn’t he the second doctor on Courfeyrac’s visit?” he asked. 

“Yes?” Bossuet responded, starting to look a little sheepish.

“Then why are you here?” He asked. Courfeyrac turned a surprised face to Bossuet, who looked very sheepish now.

“Well… you see… the thing is. We’ve never actually met in person?” He said, sounding unsure.

“STALKER!” Courfeyrac yelled pointing at his friend. Grantaire snorted but eased Courfeyrac back into a sitting position while Bossuet looked guilty.

“Well, not. Not exactly. You see, you remember the girl I went on a few dates with?” He asked. The two nodded. “Well, we went on a tandem bike. Only my balance wasn’t so great and we toppled the bike. And I kind of hurt my knee and she was worried. So she texted this other guy she knew who was a doctor. He ended up calling her and we were just all chatting and talking while he advised me on how to care for the knee. And his voice.” Joly sighed. “That’s what I fell for first. But he gave me his number to keep checking on me. And we’ve been talking ever since.” Bossuet said with a shrug. The other two looked at him in slight shock.

“And you’ve never mentioned this before because?” Grantaire asked. Bossuet gave an awkward smile.

“Why didn’t you mention it to him when he came in that day?” Courf asked.

“I was a little more concerned with you and your forehead. Besides. What was I going to say? Hi, I recognize you by your voice and I'm in love with you?” Bossuet asked. Grantaire chuckled and turned back to his sketch while Courfeyrac looked at Bossuet in disbelief.

“Traitor.” Courfeyrac muttered under his breath. He set aside their books and looked at his friend. “Really, just test him and ask him to meet up. Say you want to meet up in person.” Courfeyrac said. Bossuet bit his lip and looked at his coffee.

“But now it’s awkward. What if he recognizes me and asks why I didn’t say anything?” he asked. Grantaire groaned.

“You’re both idiots. March over to the damn place and tell them.” He said shaking his head.

“Oh, like you march over and tell Enjolras every night how you feel?” Courfeyrac shot back. Grantaire scowled and pulled his beanie down on his head.

“That’s different.” he muttered, before quietly tuning out the rest of the world. Bossuet sighed.

“Right. Well I don’t think we’re solving our love life today. But we can make sure we’re ready for the exam Thursday?” Bossuet asked. Courfeyrac groaned but went back to studying. None of the three noticed that the whole time they were talking that the two doctors in question had run in and grabbed a quick coffee before running back out. The flash of the blue scrubs they wore caught Courfeyrac’s eye out the window, but by the time he had looked away from his notes to see what the flash of color was, the doctors were already disappearing into the crowd.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was another week before Courfeyrac was able to make it back to the little coffee shop by the hospital. It wasn’t particularly close to the law school, but he and Bossuet had been studying there as it was closer to their usual hangouts with their friends. It was still out of the way, but a little closer. It did make it difficult to make it back though, as Courfeyrac had been busy at the law school and unable to make the trek. The only way he was seeing his friends was by meeting them for quick meals or studying at someone else’s apartment. 

But after a week away, aside from the adrenaline rush of hoping to see Dr. Handsome, Courfeyrac found he actually missed the coffee shop and the ambiance. There was a little bookshelf in one corner, wooden booths spread along the walls and windows, and plants strategically placed around making it feel homey. It was also one of the shops where the sunlight streamed in just right to make the room inviting and warm. Courfeyrac found himself wandering to the little shop, almost more in search of the coffee and atmosphere rather than the hope of running into the doctor.

When Courfeyrac walked up the staff behind the counter smiled and had already started his order. 

“Everything alright? We noticed you haven’t been around lately.” One said. Courfeyrac smiled,

“Ah, are my loyal subjects missing my reign?” He asked. They chuckled and one-handed over his usual drink.

“All hail the Glitter King.” She said. Courfeyrac winked at her as he took his drink and settled in his usual booth. He curled into the corner, leaning against the window. He didn’t really have the energy to do his work, but he felt the need to give the pretense and so he pulled a few files out and put them on the table, along with a nerf ball. He and Bossuet had decided it was best to not toss them around anymore, but they seemed to be excellent stress relief balls. He had one hand toying and squeezing the nerf ball, and the other was directing his game on the phone.

Courfeyrac had been playing on his phone for a while, lost in the game, and didn’t look up when the bell over the door tinkled. The person who walked in, however, noticed Courfeyrac. Combeferre’s eyebrows scrunched as he tried to remember why the curly-haired man in the booth looked so familiar. His phone buzzed in his hand and he looked down at it, before slipping the phone into the pocket of his slacks and walking up to the counter to make his order. He continued to study the man, trying to make everything click. Right as his order was called, Courfeyrac absentmindedly let go of the nerf ball and started rolling it around the table. Everything clicked into place. Combeferre attempted to get a glance at the man’s forehead to see if there were any signs of stitches, but the wild curls seemed to be on a mission to keep the forehead hidden. At the second call of his order, Combeferre was brought out of his study and went to collect his drink. He started to head towards the door again, but something was calling him to the curly-haired man and before he knew it, his feet were leading him to the booth.

Courfeyrac continued to toss the ball around to himself but missed catching it as it lightly bounced off one of the unopened files. As it rolled away, his attention was brought back to the nerf ball and he looked up to see where it went. He watched as it started to roll towards the opposite end of the table to the edge. He started to reach for it, but a familiar hand reached out and stopped it first.

“Nerf balls and books?” The warm voice asked. Courfeyrac’s breath caught in his throat, completely taken off guard for the moment he had been waiting on for weeks. He scrambled around trying to sit up, his limbs no longer seeming to be connected to his body. “I think this belongs to you?” Combeferre asked, holding the ball out.

“Yes!” Courfeyrac squeaked out, reaching to take the ball from him, his skin jumping as their fingers briefly came into contact. 

“They seem to be troublesome little things.” Combeferre said with a small smile. Courfeyrac sucked in a breath. He didn’t think he had ever seen someone talk so beautifully before. 

“They're stress relief.” Courfeyrac finally got out. Combeferre nodded his head and looked thoughtfully at the ball.

“Interesting.” He said with a nod of his head. “How are my stitches doing?” Combeferre asked, gesturing to Courfeyrac’s forehead. Courfeyrac rested his chin in his hand.

“Well, why don’t you see for yourself?” He asked.

“I would but, your hair seems to be hiding my handiwork.” He said with a smile. Courfeyrac lost all train of thought as he saw Combeferre’s smile.

“Um, hair. Oh. Right. These bad boys?” He asked, twirling a curl. Courfeyrac thanked his lucky stars that at least some of his flirtatious nature remained. Combeferre continued to smile but gave a nod of his head.

“You're a man of very few words.” Courfeyrac observed.

“I find the words when I need them.” Combeferre responded. “Do you mind if I look?” Combeferre asked. Courfeyrac shook his head and slightly pulled the curls off his forehead. Combeferre leant over Courfeyrac and gently placed his hands on his forehead. Courfeyrac felt Combeferre’s thumb brush against the healing cut. Courfeyrac sucked in a deep breath at the unexpected touch and was met with a spiced smell, a hint of cigarette and cologne. His eyes closed of their own accord and in his mind, he saw himself leaning forward to kiss this handsome man before him. But as quickly as Combeferre had seemed to materialize in front of Courfeyrac, his hands, and proximity, vanished.

“When did you get the stitches removed?” Combeferre asked.

“I uh, um, yester- two days, Tuesday.” Courfeyrac stuttered out, his eyes slowly fluttering. He noticed Comebferre still focused on his forehead. “At um. Clinic. Student. That’s what was recommended and where they booked me.” He said. Combeferre sighed and nodded his head.

“I figured as much. It isn’t done quite as nicely as I would have liked. But they did a good enough job.” Combeferre said. “Do you come to this cafe often?” he asked. Courfeyrac nodded his head again, he seemed to be nodding a lot.

“Yes, um, rather recent. But lovely place.” He said. Combeferre smiled. Courfeyrac was once again distracted by that beautiful smile, but he suddenly had a thought prodding him, remembering why he had been sitting nonstop in this cafe for the past few weeks. “Would you say we have a doctor/patient relationship?” Courfeyrac asked. Combeferre looked contemplative before nodding his head slowly.

“I suppose you could call it that. For legal reasons, yes, technically the doctor in the ER is considered your doctor. But I wouldn’t say so anymore. I doubt I’ll be needing to attend to that any more.” He said gesturing to Courfeyrac’s forehead. “And, I’m changing my rotation now. If something were to really happen I’d be consulted as I treated you, but that would be the capacity of our interaction.” He explained. Courfeyrac nodded and finally, coherent words seemed to be forming in his head.

“Is there anything I can do to change that capacity of our interaction?” Courfeyrac asked with a coy smile. He thought he sent a wink to Combeferre as well, but it came out more like a slow blink as some dust brushed Courfeyrac’s eyelashes. Combeferre looked confused and slightly worried.

“Well, I’m not sure I-” He started to reply, but was interrupted by a sharp beeping that burst the bubble that seemed to have surrounded the two men. Combeferre looked down at the beeper he had pulled from his pocket. “Right. Well, I really have to go. It was nice seeing you again. See you around?” He asked, suavely walking backwards towards the door. Courfeyrac wordlessly nodded, not really able to contain his disappointment. 

After Combeferre disappeared Courfeyrac groaned and buried his head in his arms on the table. He decided that actually having a conversation with Combeferre was worse than being teased by the possibility of catching a glimpse of the man. He sighed and brought his head up and looked at the files that seemed to now be mocking him. Having finally met the purpose of finding this coffee shop, Courfeyrac packed his work up unsure he would see Combeferre again.


	3. The Missing Piece: Dr. Handsome

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Courfeyrac hasn't been able to stop thinking about Dr. Handsome since he left the hospital... Did Enjolras read his mind?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay..... this wasn't necessarily supposed to be a chaptered fic.... but sometimes ideas won't leave my mind until I write them out.
> 
> edit: If you've been reading this as I published, then you've already read this chapter, and the new chapter is the second chapter. Sorry for the confusion!

It had been a long day of school and work for Courfeyrac. He had been at his job as Paralegal, working to get some research for a case. It was one of the few days off he had from class, but the work was what helped pay for his school, and lately for starting the student association with Enjolras. They had been trying to get it going for a couple of years now, but they hadn’t gotten enough ground. The biggest gap seemed to be trying to get a professor to support them. Courfeyrac could usually get the professors interested and they always had good things to say about their ideas, but there was clearly something holding them back. 

His phone buzzed in his pocket notifying him of a text. He thought about not answering it. Maybe it was just someone sending a meme in the group text, but his curiosity got the better of him. He opened the door to his building and looked down as he walked up the stairs. He let out a groan. “Come 2 Corinth. Found missing link.” Was the text staring back at him from Enjolras. Courfeyrac had envisioned the rest of the night in the tub, a bottle of wine, and a slow night. He didn’t mind hanging out with his friends, and most of the time he even preferred to spend the night with a friend. But it had honestly just been a long day and he just wanted to relax.  But, he also knew that Enj was obsessing, knowing they were on the verge of finally being able to form their group. He sighed and looked longingly up the stairs to his flat, before he turned around and started the walk to the cafe. “Fine. But u owe me dinner. I had a d8 with some wine and ice cream.” He sent back

As Courf entered the Corinth, he easily spotted Enj towards the back corner, along with R who sat slouched, a beanie on his head and a sketchpad in his lap. Enj glowered at R’s unresponsive figure, but Courf knew better. Courf walked in a huffed taking a seat. 

“This better be good.” He said

“Yes yes, wine and ice cream, we know.” Enj started, before R interrupted

“I’m not sure who is more upset. Enj because you aren’t excited about his new boyfriend or me because I wasn’t invited to your soireé.” Enjolras glared at R.

“I already told you, I don’t have time for anything romantic. But he’s the perfect answer to our needs!” He said, already getting animated. R raised an eyebrow and continued his sketching. Courfeyrac threw a confused glance between the two, completely lost.

“Is anyone going to clue me in on what is going on?” He asked. “Or order me food before I faint of hunger?” He asked with a pointed look. Enjolras gave a good-natured sigh and flagged down a waiter. Courfeyrac deliberately took his time before ordering some food. 

“So? What’s going on?” Courfeyrac asked.

“I’ve met someone who-” Enjolras started,

“Yes, yes. He makes your world go round and your heart skip a beat.” Grantaire interrupted. Enjolras sighed, this time with more exasperation. 

“Would you let me finish?” he asked. Granntaire huffed, pulling his beanie down and sulking.

“We’re in a class together. And we were starting to debate something. But instead of stopping our debate the professor actually encouraged it. Then, after the class, he approached me and explained he had been reading something that made him see this other viewpoint. So we came to agree somewhere in the middle.” Enjolras was explaining, but Courfeyrac’s short attention span was already giving up. He was listening, kinda, but he had already started flicking pieces of a napkin at Grantaire. “But I asked him to come meet us here. He’s a little late. But you’ll like him. And he might be the ticket. If professors see the three of us, our heart, our logic, and hear our mission, they won’t turn us down this time.” Enj said excitedly. Courfeyrac nodded his head, only slightly paying attention, until a warm, somewhat familiar voice interrupted the game R and Courfeyrac had invented. 

“Sorry, I’m late. My shift ran late, there was a big emergency and my replacement was…” The warm voice cut off as Courfeyrac turned rather suddenly to meet the gaze of the doctor. “Nerf balls and books.” He finished. 

“Com, Doctor, man!” Courfeyrac strangled out. R couldn’t contain his laughter at the odd exchange as Courf’s face darkened. 

“What?” Enjolras asked. Utterly confused. Courfeyrac made some kind of strangled noise and Combeferre gave him a slightly concerned look.

“Uh, forgive me. We’ve briefly met before, in odd circumstances.” Combeferre tried to explain. R raised an eyebrow 

“I’m pretty sure all of us met Courfeyrac in an odd circumstance.” He stated. Courfeyrac sent a kick in R’s direction, but the muffled grunt and grimace from Combeferre said that his target had been missed. R smirked and turned back to his sketching. Courfeyrac looked to the doctor in horror. 

“I am so sorry. I didn’t, I mean, usually I’m not.” Courfeyrac muttered

“What? Usually, you’re not kicking people in the shins?” Combeferre asked, leaning down to rub his shins as he sat down.

“Unfortunately I’m afraid that comes with knowing Courfeyrac.” Enjolras said.

“Well, then I guess we’ve finally been properly introduced.” Combeferre retorted. A small grin spread across R’s face.

“I like him. I can see why you’ve been mooning over him, Apollo.” R said. Enjolras groaned as Combeferre’s face was slightly confused and unreadable. In the brief break, the waiter set down the food in front of Courfeyrac. Courfeyrac reached for the salt and ended up knocking his water. But Combeferre seemed to have anticipated something happening and managed to catch the glass, only splashing out some of the water. Courfeyrac watched in horror before sitting back.

“Dear God, Bossuet has finally rubbed off on me.” He groaned. Grantaire snickered in the corner while Enjolras looked on slightly bemused.

“Is it Courfeyrac or Bossuet?” Combeferre asked, “I don’t think we were ever introduced.”

“Courfeyrac.” He managed to get out. “But I don’t think I’ll be shaking your hand for fear I’ll do something even more embarrassing.” Combeferre laughed lowly

“Combeferre. It’s a pleasure to finally and officially meet you.” He said, “How’s your head then?” He asked. 

“My wha? Oh my head. Yes, it’s fine.” He said, moving his attention to his meal. Combeferre looked slightly confused.

“Is he always this… confused?” He asked the others. R and Enjolras shared shit-eating grins. 

“Non. Seems to be you that brings this side out in him.” Combeferre’s brow creased with more worry and he instantly went into doctor mode.

“Have you been having nausea or trouble remembering things?” Combeferre asked, turning his attention to Courfeyrac, his hand reaching out to rest on Courfeyrac’s knee. The other three looked at him in confusion.

“N-non. Just a long day, you know.” He replied, busying himself with the food in front of him. Combeferre nodded.

“I just wanted to check. Make sure you aren’t having signs of a concussion.” He explained. Courfeyrac nodded and turned his attention to his food, praying he wouldn’t make any more of a fool of himself. But a slow smile finally etched it’s way across his face as he had finally gotten the second introduction to Dr. Handsome he’d been longing for. And, if Enjolras had his way, it looked like they’d be spending a lot of time together for the foreseeable future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this might actually get updated with more? Maybe Bossuet will make an appearance? More teasing from R and Enj? Also.... there's an idea floating around my head of a chapter to go between the two and Bossuet and Courfeyrac trying to "happen" upon meeting Combeferre and Joly again.
> 
> Edit: Okay, so the floating chapter finally materialized and is Chapter 2!


End file.
